Oh, Illinoise!

Being that I cannot study for history anymore, I thought I would instead update my blog about the happenings of my life and the random thoughts going on in my head these days. By the way, has anyone noticed that this semester is going horribly fast? The closer I get to graduation and the "real world," the faster things go. I am a bit worried about leaving school and being crushed with debt and a horrible job market. Egh.

Anyway, life is good otherwise. I would never have believed it, but I have defined pectorals, biceps, triceps, various leg muscles, and a wonderful gluteus maximus. Working out consistently has been one of the best life decisions I have made in awhile. It makes me feel better, forces me to prioritize my life, improves my heath and my image! If I may be so cocky, "Good job Michael!"

Last weekend was an adventure, one that I needed. Isaac and I went down to the U of I for Unofficial St. Patrick's Day with his friend Chris Johns, who incidentally got ahold of my UIC name and password last year and proceeded to get me banned from the internet for a week due to massive downloading, but I forgave him. Anyway, the trip was fun and incredibly decadent. Champaign was filled with thousands of drunk college kids roaming around, looking for a cool party or food. Needless to say, Chipotle was packed the entire weekend. Gabby's party was fun, and a bit interesting with the two exs being so close together for the first time in awhile. They behaved, but hardly. I had to put my iron foot down a few times. After excessive amounts of drinking, the three of us (minus Chris Johns who went to his friends) passed out in Gabby's bed. When I say passed out I really mean continually fought for a good position and blanket coverage the entire night only to get neither and wake up unrested and aching.

The next morning/day was spent with Isaac and I roaming around, doing odd things here and there. We managed to get a bit of studying done as well to make up for the guilty feeling of procrastination. I feel like Isaac and I are getting much closer as friends, something that I like a lot. We hang out a lot, eat together, work out together and I like it. We joke that we are considered a gay couple on campus, and doubtless some people think it.

Anyway, after Gabby got off of work at Jamba Juice, we hung out for awhile, but informed her that we would be leaving. Gabby was noticeably upset, and I knew why and though I warned her, I still sympathized. I understand how she feels, to be next to the one she loves and not being able to have him. But, we said our goodbyes and went on a random adventure to Eastern Illinois University where they were having their unoffical that night. We met up with their friend Elliot who happens to be gay, but the most confusing gay person ever. I met him the night before at U of I where I studied him closely. I just could not make sense of him, and I think he may have avoided me at some level. I can't be sure, but I wonder just how comfortable he is with his sexuality. Anyway, the four of us got to a party and were a bit shocked. At least Isaac and I were. He turned to me and said, "We aren't in Chicago anymore." The party was full of hicks. Some dirty, some whores, some inbred. Granted, we made the best of it and had a really fun time for awhile. I told myself that tonight was a night where I kept my inhibitions and didn't act flaming, for lack of a better word. I ended up dancing for a total of two minutes, but that was enough. Two brothers went to Isaac and began flipping out that there was a gay man at the party. "We don't do that here," were the exact words spoken. Isaac told me, and I was bothered, but not overly so. But then, Isaac continued to socialize with the ones who didn't like me, and Elliot and Chris both disappeared due to girl drama. So I left and wandered around campus for awhile. Honestly, I don't remember any of it, just that I did. I came back to find Elliot very distressed where he proceeded to tell me his boy problems. The one time we had a conversation and he mentioned men. I was more in awe than actually contributing to the conversation. Eventually we all fell asleep with no more mishaps the rest of the night. We awoke at 7AM to screeching sounds of unknown animals. Once we realized where we were, we got up and out. Instantly. Our drive home consisted of Isaac's broken windshield wipers and rain. I will let you conjecture to what happened.

There was a moment going down to EIU when we stopped at a gas station. It was the only thing for miles, and you could only see small dots that were the houses in the far distance. Other than that, there was a black wall of nothingness. It was quiet, and nothing moved other than us. I looked around and realized that I was back home. Strange to think about so late, but I had oddly missed my Illinois., the flat fields of corn and soybeans, the odd assortment of people ranging from Chicago to Decatur and everything in between, and not to mention the horribly paved roads! As I returned to the car, I turned to Isaac and said, "We are in the middle of fucking nowhere!"

I also would like to get to know Elliot more. He is a really funny guy, and his sexuality greatly interests me. Yes, he is gay. I understand that. But it is something different to him than to me, something that I have never actually ever seen before. Don't get me wrong, I am not at all condemning him. Everyone acts differently, and though stereotypes are true sometimes, they don't hold up uniformly, especially with gay men! I have seen so many dirty, unkempt gay men in this world to prove it to me. I myself am hardly organized or clean. But I love to study people, watch their habits, listen to them and understand their point-of-view in this life. Elliot has proved to stump me, something that only entices me more! It sounds like I am treating him as my experiment, and maybe at some level I am?

That was my strange, wonderful weekend. If you made it this far, Kudos to you my friend.

Photo by Frank Hebicht